Boy from the Sky
by AshallynDXA
Summary: Catalyst; Something that triggers a change. In New Tekkit-Topia, things have been on shaky grounds for a long time. Across the sea, an unknown force is calling his banners. King DJH3MAX, Ross to his friends, is calling his as well. But when a boy falls from the sky, one very different from Ross and his people, and war on the horizon, how far will one man go to save his people?
1. Chapter 1- The Beginning

People often say that we all have one defining moment in our lives. One moment when everything we know changes in an instant.

For me, that was the day I found Reese. The American boy who changed my life, and the lives of everyone around me. Friends, enemies, and neighbors. Reese changed everything. I don't know how he did it, but he did. Change followed in Reese's wake, tiptoeing in on tiny cat feet.

Looking back at the times I've had with him, I realize that the moment we all noticed the change was when we found him at the Spire, after the first battle of the war. But now I've gotten ahead of myself. Perhaps it's best for me to start at the beginning.

The day he fell from the sky.


	2. Chapter 2- I Hate Being King

Chapter Two- I Hate Being King.

_Notch, I am so sick of this,_ I think. My neck hurts from holding up the bloody crown, and my butt hurts from sitting on the throne for so long. Thankfully, this petitioner is the last. He's going on about some villager rampage that's destroyed some of his crops. I tell him he can have some logs from the storehouse to build a fence, and send Eric to go with the farmer and collect the logs. Almost immediately after the doors to the Spire are closed, I rip the crown off my head and throw it across the room, swearing.

"I hate that blasted thing! It's so heavy!" Trott snickers a bit behind his hand, trying to hide his laughter. Smith has no such restraints; he throws his head back and laughs the sound echoing through the empty expanse of the Spire. I glare at him. "Smith, it's not funny." Trott's snickers grow a bit louder, Smith just laughs harder. "I'm serious, it sucks!" Now Trott is laughing, the two men's laughs echoing even louder.

I sink my forehead into my palm, closing my eyes and shaking my head. Those two are unstoppable. _Oh, what I would give for a minute of the happiness they share. _ We've lived in the Spire, formally named Angel's Reach, for close to seven years now; it was completed in the twelfth year of my reign. For five years, I had ruled New Tekkittopia from a hole in the ground, over which the Spire was built.

For the past three years, Trott and Smith had lived in the same room, and for two and a half years, had shared the same bed. I was happy for them, but I often found myself longing for the simple companionship that they had shared, and wishing that I could have a friendship that had evolved like theirs. Maybe that could have happened years ago, but now every girl who was presented to me simply wanted to be queen. They didn't care who I was as a person, they just wanted the position that marrying me would bring.

_Being a king is a lonely affair,_ I realize.


	3. Chapter 3- War Plans

Chapter Three- War Plans

After Trott and Smith calm down, we go up the stairs to the main private level. I sit at the head of the heavy redwood table that sits in the center of one of the points that make the building a star shape. The boys join me, and we sit down to discuss the situation as we see it, based on the reports that came in today. The news is not good, but it could always be worse.

"The King-Across-The-Sea has been busy," Smith says as an introduction. "Today, House Serret and House Mortalis joined his army. That brings the total to twelve Skeleton houses, seventeen Spiders, and fifty-seven Zombies. No Endermen yet; looks like they've kept their promise to stay loyal to Rythian."

"Thank Notch for that," Trott mutters. I nod my agreement; Endermen are dangerous enemies.

'So what do we do?" I say, directing my gaze into the bearded man's brown eyes.

"Nothing, yet. I would counsel waiting until-" He's cut off by a whistling noise, and my eyes, which had flicked to the window, caught sight on something- no, someONE- falling. I look at the boys, confused.

_What the hell...?!_


	4. Chapter 4- Cuts and Scrapes

Chapter Four- Cuts and Scrapes

"What the hell?" says Trott, already out of his seat and running down the stairs. Smith and I are quick on his heels. "Oh shit. Ross, get the kit! Now! He's still alive! Smith, help me carry him up there!" When Smith brings up a man cradled in his arms, I can already see at least two bones bent in the wrong direction arm and leg. Thankfully, his back and neck look ok. I motion for Smith to set him down on the table, having just cleared all the maps and reports off of it. Quickly, I start at his feet and work my way up, dressing wounds and checking bones.

By the time I reach his waist, it's well into the afternoon. When I reach his ribcage, it's about seven, maybe even eight. Trott and Smith have left; they didn't disturb me, for which I'm thankful. _He's so hurt,_ I think, shocked. There were so many little cuts and bruises, as well as some cuts that were far more serious. Thankfully, only one broken bone. For the first time, I bother to check his pockets for an ID. Reese Jackson, it says. An American. What's an American? I shrug, put the wallet aside, and continue my task.

Three broken ribs and five cracked ones later, I arrive at the nasty cut across his chest. I already know it will scar, and having seen all the blood on his shirt when he was first carried in, I know it's his most serious wound. I slap my forehead, berating myself for my stupidity, remembering too late that my hands are covered in blood. Now there's a bloody handprint on my forehead. Lovely. After dressing the wound, I move to the cut on the side of his head. The blood had dried; that meant it was older than the others, but not by much. After a quick look at my medical books, I determine that this is what knocked him out. I dress that as well, and go off to find Smith.

Once I find him, I discover he's curled up with Trott in the den, watching a movie. They've both already fallen asleep, so I leave them alone. I'll just have to carry the boy- no, Reese- to the guest room myself. When I return to the map room, Reese is trying to sit up. Cussing, I rush over and gently push him back down.

"You still have to heal!" I shout, furious with my charge. "I just sewed up those cuts of yours, and set all the bones you've broken! You will be careful!" He looks up at me with a mixture of shock, confusion, and a hint of fear.


	5. Chapter 5- Sweet Dreams

Chapter Five

Reese's POV

"You will be careful!" the man shouts, scaring the crap out of me. I mean, seriously! I just woke up, in tremendous pain, in a room I've never seen before, and when I sit up to see what's around me, a man I don't know turns the corner, and when he sees me sitting up, shouts at me and pushes me back down. What the hell?

I take a moment to take in the face of the man who dressed all my wounds, evident by the bloody handprint on his forehead. As I look up at him, a drop of blood- my blood- drips onto my face. The dark eyes, which were full of fury a moment before, suddenly go soft as he reaches down to dab off the spot of red with his shirt, already bloodstained.

For the first time, I take in the fact that he is shirtless. Altogether, he's quite striking. Black hair, which was once cropped close, had now grown out and hung in shaggy locks around his face. Dark brown eyes, almost black, set in a chiseled face that could have been sculpted by a master. Sun-tanned skin, muscular arms. Then I realize that I am shirtless, and, looking down, I see the expanse of bandages wrapped around my chest. _Now I know why I'm in pain_.

"I'm sorry I yelled," he says, and his voice takes me by surprise, jolting me out of my thoughts and back into the moment. He talks really weird! I shake my head.

"It's my fault. I was very rude, trying to sit up. I didn't realize that someone had taken care of me. Usually, when I wake up I this much pain, it's after I've gotten ridiculously drunk at a bar and started a fight. I'm always the first to get up. The other guys are usually worse off," I say with a grin. He laughs, a melodious sound that makes me smile.

"Here," he says, slipping his arms under my knees and back. "Lets get you into a bed." he picks me up like I weigh nothing, and for the first time, I feel secure enough to hold my arms to my chest instead of wrapping them around the person's neck. As my world fades to black, I notice that the man- whose name I've completely forgotten- is singing softly.

"Sweet dreams are made of these, who am I to disagree..." _I know that song..._

-Ross' POV-

As I'm singing, I look down and see the Reese has fallen asleep. "Travel the world and the seven seas, everybody's looking for something." By the time I finish the lyric, I've reached the room that's been laid out for Reese to use. I lay him down in the bed, pull the covers up, and dim the lights in the room. When I reach the door, I pause and turn around to look at this strange boy again. It's strange; What I'm feeling has been described to me before, but I've never felt it. I think it's called love.

"Sweet dreams, Reese." I shut the door quietly and go one door down to my room, where I spend the next few hours lying awake, unable to stop thinking about him.


	6. Chapter 6- Across The Narrow Sea

Chapter 6- Across The Narrow Sea

_Hmmm, it's a shame those stupid zombies didn't go back inside at dawn. Now I'm down about 300 troops._ The man with the white face grimaced, annoyed with his stupid commanders. They should have known better, and their failure only served to aggravate him. In addition, all of his scouting parties had not sent reports back for over a month. All, save one, whose only report was of a man falling from the sky. _Ridiculous, _he thought. _Absolutely ridiculous. My entire force is composed of blithering idiots. _Enraged and roaring, he swept all of the papers on his desk off with a single blow. They rained down throughout the room, falling like feathers in the wind. The slave in the corner flinched, terrified that he would turn his rage on her.

"This is madness!" he roared. "I am the King-Across-The-Sea! They should be cowering in fear! I destroyed the walls of Verigan's Hold! I corrupted Terrorvale! I am the invincible! My minions have killed thousands, and yet none of my followers will send my reports! Useless FOOLS!"

Fury encompasses him; his red eyes glow even brighter, burning like the flames of the Nether. His black robes burn with an ethereal fire that's not even there, and his trusted minions begin to spawn around him. Soon, the tower room is filled with creepers, and they hail him in their hissing voices, crying out, "Lord of Creeperssssss!" "Hail to hisssss Gracsssssse!"

"What isssss thy bidding, my lord?" says the leader.

"Send a party across the sea. All of you in this room. I want you to report on them. Spy on them. Tell me their secrets! Do not fail me." As he watches, they leave.

_Finally, that land across the sea will belong to me. _ He strode to his window and looked across a cityscape that was once famous around the world. He couldn't recall the name, though. But who cared? The city had fallen; It had put up a good fight, but in the end, it had fallen, like all the others. In the distance, a fire sparked, then roared to life in the torch of a statue that stood alone on an island. He hated that statue, too.

_But soon,_ he thought, _they will all fall. And then I will be king of the world. Then I can get someone else to destroy that ruddy statue. _

Can you guess who it is? XD First person to message me or post it in a review gets a virtual Jaffa cake! And a shoutout at the beginning of the next chapter for the first three!

-Ash


	7. Chapter 7- Waking Up

**A/N **

** Thank you for the responses to the last chapter! As promised, here is the reward and the shoutout;**

**Aaaaand, in first place we have; *drumroll* SwiftShadowDragon! You win the virtual Jaffa prize!**

**Second place goes to; SpiritedandLoyal! **

**And, last but most certainly not least, third place goes to; Mage-Pages!**

**Thanks for the reviews, guys! Rock on, and enjoy Chapter 7!**

Chapter 7- Waking Up

My eyelids feel as heavy as lead, and I could almost swear my eyelashes are stuck together. After a brief struggle, I manage to open them. Above me stretches a white marble ceiling, with a small purple puddle in the corner farthest from me. _I wonder what that is..._ _No matter. First I need to figure out where the hell I am. _ My stomach growls very loudly. _And I need to find breakfast._ I turn my attention to the rest of me. Linen bandages wrap my torso, and one leg is in a cast. _What the... Oh. Right. Falling. Explosion... wait, explosion?! _I sit bolt upright, and instantly regret it. A jagged line of pain runs down my chest, left to right. The bandages start turning red all along the line of pain, and I involuntarily cry out. A man runs in, worry sketched across his face, and I remember what happened.

"Where exactly am I? This isn't the room I woke up in last time," I say. The man ignores me, running over to check the bandages on my chest. Already, there is a line of solid red along the pain line. What must be my own blood has soaked through the linen.

"No, this isn't the same room. Do you remember the name of the building?" I shake my head, and he looks even more worried.

"You never told me what it was called." He looks relieved. Come to think of it, I never asked for his name. "What's your name?" The worry is back. "You didn't tell me that one, either." I grin, and he laughs back.

"Well, since you're mouthing off, I can only assume that there is no brain damage. That's good; I was really worried." He breathes a visible sigh of relief. _Wow, he really cares..._ My stomach growls again, and he looks with wonder at my linen-swathed stomach, and I can't help but laugh. I regret that when the motion makes my entire chest feel like an elephant dance party is happening on it.

"Erm..." He just laughs.

"You're probably hungry, huh?" I nod. "I'll fetch your crutches." A moment later, he's back in the room, with the promised crutches under his arm. He passes them to me and tries to lift me out of my bed, but I wave him off, because I want to see if I can do it myself. I can, and I feel a moment of joy. Then my stomach grumbles again, making me giggle. The man just laughs even harder.

"Ok, let's go."

"Right this way, Reese." I look at him, shocked that he knows my name, seeing as I can still feel my badge in its hiding place on the outside of my thigh. "I found your wallet in your pocket," he says by way of explanation. I nod.

We start towards the stairs. Before long, we are out of the hall and for the first time I recognize the enormity of this palace. The ceiling reaches for the sky, seven or more stories above my head. The stairs we are descending look like the ones that once graced the Titanic, but these are done in white marble instead of oak wood. In fact, I haven't seen wood used as a building material anywhere in this whole building. The main hall takes my breath away, and this is on the residential levels. This isn't even the palace level!

Six separate points lead away from the staircase, forming a wonky start. Not the Star of David, but just a six pointed star. In one of the six points, I see a big black hulking thing that I can only assume is some sort of forge, especially seeing as heat was radiating off of it. Another point holds tiers of chests, all bearing labels. Yet another holds a table, and maps on the surrounding walls. But the crowning jewel is the Thaumic altar in the center.

Smooth gray stones ringed with runes hover in midair, and steps leading up to it are clearly under construction. A redheaded man is tinkering with the steps, and as I watch, he assembles another on a table, zaps it with a wand he's produced from a pocket, and places the glowing step in its place. The altar flares up, and then settles down, but the glow is distinctly brighter than it was. _Very cool. I had no idea that this magic actually worked. Last I remember, it was still in theory. No one had managed to get anything accomplished. _

Off in another corner, a black table glows with green light, with multi-dimensional holo-projections displayed above it. Currently, a helmet sits- or rather, floats- in the center. A skinny, short guy in a lab coat over a brown hoodie stands hunched over it, pressing icons in the projections. The man pulls a pair of goggles- old fashioned, leather strap, gold frames- from his pocket and sets it on the table. As I watch, the goggles are scanned, and accepted. With a push of a button, the goggles fuse to the helmet. With a grin, the man picks up the helmet.

"Hey, Smith!" The redhead looks up. "Catch!" He throws the helmet. The redhead, who is apparently called Smith, catches it and turns it over in his hands, examining it.

"Dude, this is sweet!" he exclaims. "Thanks, Trott!" The other man, Trott, grins and gives him a thumbs up. Then he looks over, and sees Ross and me at the foot of the stairs.

"Hey, Smith!"

"Yo!"

"Sleeping Beauty's up!" Smith's head shoots up, and he catches my eye and grins. Both men walk over to the two of us. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Ross grinning. Clearly, these two mean a lot to him, although I have no idea who they are.

But something tells me that, in time, these two will mean a lot to me as well.


	8. Chapter 8- Welcome!

Trott sticks his hand out. "I'm Trott. Often confused for a walrus, but I am not a walrus. I do like them, though. My specialty is crafting high-tech armor and tools." He grins, and I shake his hand.

"I'm Alex Alsmiffy, but I go by Smith." I shake his hand as well. "I'm in charge of getting the raw materials for Trott, when I have time, and handling the magic side of the kingdom. Basically, I'm in charge of all the magic that happens in this place."

"I'm Reese Alexander Jackson. I'm from America, and my specialty is custom weapons design. I'm a trained fighter, but I have other skills as well."

"Well, Reese, welcome to our home. You want a grand tour?" Just then my stomach growls again. "Ok, maybe after you eat something," he says, laughing a bit. I nod my agreement, looking around for a fridge or a pantry or something. The guys have started moving over towards the chests, so I follow them, swinging along on my crutches.

"Yo, Ross, where's the food?" Trott asks.

"How should I know? These things are never organized." I laugh a bit, and slip on my crutches because I forgot about the stupid broken leg. With a cuss and a thump, I fall to the marble floor and a lance of pain shoots up my leg.

"Oh god, Reese!" exclaims Ross. In an instant he's by my side. "Are you ok?" I shake my head, unable to speak through the pain. A strong pair of arms loops under my armpits and hoists me to my feet, where Trott and Ross are each holding a crutch.

"Thanks." I hiss from between gritted teeth. The pain is almost unbearable, but I think I can deal. With great difficulty, I put the crutches back under my arms and move slowly over to the chests. Trott and Smith give me a bit of space, but Ross is being a helicopter, a half step behind me the whole way.

By the time we reach the chests, Trott has already busted out the steaks, and Smith is busy finding some berries, mushrooms, bowls, and spoons. He walks over to us with his arms overflowing, and slips on a stray bit of liquid flux. He goes down, dropping everything as he goes. The bowls clatter to the floor, and I get hit in the face by a flying raspberry. Ross, who was in front of me, is completely covered in mushroom stew. There's a stunned silence, and then Smith tips his head back and laughs really loud, the sound echoing off the high marble walls. Trott shakes his head and goes to help him up, but slips in the stew and falls on top of Smith.

"Ughhh!" All the air goes out of Smith's lungs as Trott hits his chest.

"Oops…" says Trott, trying to get up. Smith wraps his arms around Trott and rolls over, pinning the smaller man to the ground.

"Gotcha," he says with a grin, mushroom stew and berry juice dripping off his hair.

"Smith, now I'm covered in stew!" Ross goes to pull them out, but he slips too, and soon all four of us are laughing really hard. I still have no idea how to get them up, though…

_Wait a minute…_ Looking at my crutches, which are leaning against the chest I'm sitting on, a plan starts slowly forming in my head.

I take a few bits of wood from the chest adjacent to me and set them up in a sort of stand thing. I brace myself against it and stick one crutch over the top.

"Here, grab this," I say. They can't hear me. "OI!" They stop. "Grab onto this. I'll pull you out." Ross looks at my incredulously.

"Are you strong enough?" I roll my eyes.

"I was a cop. Of course I'm strong enough." He raises his eyebrows, but doesn't ask any questions.

Five minutes later, I've got all three of them out of the mess and upstairs cleaning up. I take a long, ponderous look at the remaining mess on the floor, debating whether or not to clean it up. One side of me is screaming _Yes! Clean it up!_, but the other side (and the bigger, more sensible one) is saying _Leave it. You'll just slip and hurt yourself worse._ I consider the sticky, sloppy mess again.

_Oh, whatever. I'll get it later._ I swing around on my crutches and go back to the chest. Picking up a steak, I consider it for a moment, trying to decide whether or not to eat it. I mean, the others are upstairs, so it could be rude… My stomach decides for me, rumbling loudly.

"I agree," I say, looking down at my stomach. I dig in.

_This is a good steak._


	9. Chapter 9- There's Shit EVERYWHERE!

_**A/N; Merry Christmas, everybody! I apologize for taking so long to post again, but finals are a bitch! So here is the latest installment of Reese's story, and for more lovely Christmas fluff, check out Chapter Three of the collection **_**The Way It Is, The Way It Should Be**_** because it's a nice fluffy fic that may make you smile. Merry Christmas and happy holidays, you guys! Enjoy!**_

_**-Ash**_

"Wake up! Wake up, wake up, wake up!"

I snap my eyes open and reach for the sword I keep propped against my nightstand, expecting the worst instantly. But all my fear subsides as soon as I see Ross and Reese jumping up and down on top of the bed. Trott, who is next to me, rolls over and pulls the covers over his head, cussing and complaining in a low voice. I drop the sword off the side of the bed, covering my face with one hand.

"Oh my god, you two. It's six in the morning. What are you doing?" Reese, his leg fully healed after six months, jumps once more then falls on top of my chest, straddling my torso.

"It's Christmas!" he yells, his eyes gleaming and sparkling. I push him off and roll over, his words not really getting through my foggy, half awake brain. Reese gets back up and keeps jumping, shouting the same thing over and over again. Then the words hit my brain and I sit straight up in bed, causing both him and Ross to fall.

"Holy shit, it's Christmas!" I throw off the covers and jump out of bed, hastily throwing on a shirt. I had slept in my jeans after a long, late night of preparing the magical strings of lights for the castle. "We're expecting everyone over for dinner!" I run to the other side of the bed and tear off Trott's covers. "Get up, Trott! We have to clean up the castle!"

"Why are we having people here…" he mutters, groping for the covers. "Why can't they all go to Lalna's castle?" I pick him up and set him on his feet, once again struck by how short he is.

"Because he hosted Christmas last year," I say. "Besides, we haven't hosted Christmas in the Spire yet." Finally, he opens his eyes and moves around, finding clothes in the sprawling mess that is the room we share. Once he's found some clothes, we walk out into the main room. My jaw practically hits the ground.

"Holy shit."

-Reese POV-

The place is an absolute mess. Pizza boxes from BeBop's pizza joint, bowls, and discarded bits and bobs from crafting litter the floors. Smith's magic area is in shambles, books and essentia vials strewn everywhere. My gunsmith's table, tack workbench, and storage chests are cluttered with bits of metal and leather and rivets. Trott's machinery area is beyond description. I can't even see the tinkering table under the piles of shit everywhere. The smeltery is a mess, and all of the casts and molds are all over the floor. Chests everywhere are overflowing with crap, or hanging open from when one or the other of us forgot to close them. Once I get over the shock of the mess, I take stock of the situation, organizing a list of things to do in my head.

"Right. Ross, you start on the furnace and smeltery area. Get things cleaned up. Things that need to be put in a chest, leave in a pile in the middle of the floor. Make another pile for trash. That goes for you two as well. Trott," I say turning to the bleary eyed man in a walrus shirt, "you handle the tinker's table and machinery area. The magic and flux cleanup is up to you, Smith. We don't want Kim going crazy around the flux, ok? I'll handle the chests and the trash. Ready? GO!"

In less than an hour, everything is clean. Smith is being the Sorcerer's Apprentice, waving his wand at a bunch of mops. Thankfully, he's better at magic than Mickey Mouse, so they aren't going haywire. As we go along, the pile of trash in the middle gets bigger and bigger, but the place looks much better than it did earlier. Somehow, Trott finishes his area quicker than everyone else, so I send him downstairs to start decorating and putting up the tree. After Ross, Smith, and I finish, we head down the grand staircase to help decorate.

Four hours later, the place is spotless. The Main Hall is decorated with magic lights and golden tinsel. In the center of the room, a giant Christmas tree rises up almost to the ceiling, a golden star perched at the top. Presents are scattered around the bottom, with room for many more. Smith turns to Trott with a confused look on his face.

"How the hell did you get that star up there?" he asks the shorter man. Trott grins.

"Very carefully." I laugh, and so does Ross.

"Ok, guys!" he says. "Go get cleaned up and dress nicely. We are expecting people in" -he checks the clock- "Forty minutes. Go!" As one unit we thunder up the stairs to complete the last stage of preparations.


	10. Chapter 10- Christmas!

Forty minutes later, all four of us are waiting at the bottom of the stairs for everyone to arrive.

Then there came a knocking upon the hall's great doors, and Ross rushed over to see what was the matter. He opened the doors, and snow swirled in, along with a herd of people. Sips and Sjin, carrying a big bag of presents between them, followed closely by Xephos and Lomadia, who were arm in arm. Honeydew, already a bit wasted, carried the bag for the three of them, and he came in with Lalna. Holding Lalna's hand is Kim, and their presents were carried in a huge backpack by Kim. Ross closes the door, but seconds later it is opened again, and BeBop and Ridge wander in, BeBop's arm over Ridge's, power suits folding down into their wristwatches. Verbal follows them in, staggering under the weight if a massive bag presents. BeBop is also carrying a massive stack of his homemade pizzas, which we all know are amazing. Trott and Smith move forward to help unload him, before he drops everything. I hang out in my suit, leaning against the banister. I've never met these people before, so I'm mildly reluctant to join the party. Ross beckons for me to join him, and I wave him away with a small shake of my head. I'm gonna wait until later to mingle.

Another cold breeze swirls in, followed by yet another group, led by a man in an ice blue suit who can only be Prince Martyn, frozen up for the winter season. The rest of his group- a girl with white and pink hair, a boy in jeans and a t-shirt, and two tall, bearded men- staggers in from the cold, shaking the snow off their boots. Smith's magic golems take people's coats and then scurry off to a side room, returning just in time for the next person. The noise level rises, as it tends to when large groups of people gather.

Then both of the double doors open, propelled by magic, admitting a tall, dark-haired man in a mask and a slightly shorter girl with fiery red hair and a bionic arm. No snow has accumulated on her, and purple particles flit around the man. With a rush of air that pushes the icy cold air farther into the room, they touch down gracefully just inside the door, followed by a man in a green dinosaur hoodie and another huge, burly man with several kegs. The dark-haired man has impeccable grace, but the girl staggers a bit upon landing and swears, drawing the attention of the crowd Instantly, the room goes absolutely silent.

"Rythian!" a few people whisper to their neighbors. I go on high alert, sensing possible trouble. From what I can gather based on the bandages on the girl's arm above the mechanical part and the still-fading bruises and cuts on both of their faces and arms, something very bad has just happened to the pair of them Clearly, most of the people weren't expecting to see them here this Christmas. Lalna, slightly pale, stands up and pushes Kim behind him, looking like he expects a fight. Hands are stretching to the weapons that are close at hand, and the room is filled with nervous energy. I push off the banister and stand, ready for anything that might happen.

The man- Rythian- brushes snow off of his shoulders and looks around, taking stock of the room. He locates Lalna and starts towards him, his long legs closing the distance quickly, his footsteps echoing through the hall. The mage stops just short of the scientist and looks him up and down, studying the scientist with bright purple eyes. I look over at Ross, but he's completely frozen, shock and worry written all over his face.

Then the mage holds out one hand, palm up.

"Peace," he says in a Swedish accent. The scientist studies the mage, weighing his options. Reject the offer and start a war on Christmas Day, or accept it and right an obviously serious wrong? The whole room is tense, hands on hilts of swords, the occasional glimmer of magic brushing a few fingertips.

Lalna takes a deep breath.

"Peace, because war is unbearable. And it's Christmas. Christmas is a time for forgiveness, isn't it? That's what it's all about. Things haven't been right between us for a while, old friend. I'd like to change that," he says, and places his palm on top of Rythian's. They shake hands. The mage smiles behind his mask, and pulls Lalna into a hug. Lalna tenses up, then smiles and returns the hug.

The room erupts into applause, and everyone piles around the two men, slapping backs and smiling. The dinosaur cracks open one of the kegs with a roar, and the party has begun. Shortly afterwards, the band arrives, and most of the hall becomes a dance floor. Smith triggers the magic light show, and everyone whoops.

Guests continue to stagger in throughout the party, bringing fresh waves of cold air into the hot room. Eventually, I have to take off my suit coat, and roll up the sleeves of the dress shirt underneath, loosening the tie a bit. By this point, I've moved over to the doorway that leads off to the room where we've stored some food for the party. Above me hangs a sprig of mistletoe. There's a tap on my shoulder, and I turn to see Ross behind me.

"Mistletoe," he says quietly.

"Indeed it is," I say, tilting my head upwards to study it, which is easy since I'm about as tall as Smith. When I bring my head back down, Ross grabs the back and pulls my face down to his, then kisses me, For a split second, my heart absolutely stops. The it skyrockets, and I kiss him back.

"Merry Christmas." he says in a husky voice, then slips past me and rejoins the party.

"Merry Christmas," I whisper, long after he's gone. I lift hand up to feel my lips, and find them smiling. Once my brain reconnects with the rest of me, I smile even more, the give a war cry and drive my fist into the air. "Hell yeah!"

After I calm down enough to stop grinning, I return to my post against the banister. Ross looks over at me, then blushes the tiniest bit and returns to his conversation with one of the really tall bearded men.

"Hey, Reese! There's somebody over here I'd like you to meet!" Smith waves me over to where Rythian is standing with the dinosaur man, who is actually shorter than he appears without the added height of the line of spikes that usually graces the top of his head. "Reese, this is Rythian, and this is Teep." Smith gestures to each man in turn. Rythian does the same thing he did for Lalna, offering him arm, palm up. I grasp it firmly and shake.

"Nice to meet you," I say.

"And you as well," he says in a deep voice laced with a Swedish accent. The dinosaur motions his hands, and from what I can pick up, it's a variation on the sign language I learned for fun.

"My name is Teep," he signs. "I'm really half dinosaur, but all I got was the eyes, teeth, and tail, so I wear the hoodie to make up for it. Well, I got the spikes down my spine, but they're really small. They're getting bigger, though!" He smiles, and I can see that he wasn't kidding about the teeth. Now that I'm close up, the green, reptilian eyes really are striking.

"Nice to meet you too," I say. "Pardon me if I appear rude, but how are you half dinosaur?" He laughs, a mixture of dinosaur roar and human laugh. "And how come you can't speak the human language, but you can roar?" He answers back, his hands flying through the signs with incredible speed.

"I'm half dinosaur because that's how Lalna accidentally made me." My eyebrows raise a hair. _That's new._ "I got the dinosaur bits from the half destroyed DNA he used, and the human part from the hair he accidentally dropped in the incubator. Therefore, the two strands somehow fused and you get me. A slight error with the vocal cords led to the dinosaur half developing, and not the human. But hey, I still look awesome!" I laugh.

"Indeed you do, indeed you do. You're pretty awesome, you know that?" I've never seen a dinosaur blush (hell, I've never seen dinosaur except in a museum!), but I swear Teep did.

"Thanks!"

We talk for a few more minutes, and Zoey eventually breaks off from Kim and joins our discussion. The five of us laugh and compare stupid stories for a while, and then a loud BANG draws our attention.

Trott stands halfway up the grand staircase, holding a lighter in one hand and an unused firework in the other. Falling sparks indicate that he has already set one off, and the fact that nothing is burning tells me it was Smith's rocket. Ross, off to one side of him, claps his hands to get people's attention. He's put on a small gold circlet for the occasion, his crown. Not elaborate, but still graceful and beautiful.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my home!" Applause. "I was going to make a speech, but I think I've had a bit too much to drink already, so it won't be a good one." The crowd roars with laughter, and golems run around, bringing small flutes of champagne. Ross beckons for Smith and I to join him, so we make our way up to them. Once we're there and everyone has champagne, he raises his glass to make a toast.

"To old friends, and new. To forgiveness and happiness, and to this kingdom! May it rise, and never fall!" the room erupts with chorus of "I'll drink to that!" "Cheers to that!" and other affirmatives, then goes quiet as everyone drains the flutes. "Now lets open presents!"

-Trott's POV-

_I think I've had a bit too much to drink as well,_ I say to myself. With all the gifts opened and thank-yous exchanged, people have started passing out in corners. I go up to several people and tell them that there are plenty of open rooms, if they want to sleep it off. Everybody agrees, and in twenty minutes, everyone is up in their rooms. I follow the last ones up, and then flop down on my bed and fall asleep instantly.

-Smith's POV-

I stagger up the steps, trying to stop the world from spinning. I've most definitely had WAAY too much to drink, and I'll probably regret the last seven drinks tomorrow. Attempting to walk into my room I whack the side of the doorframe on the way in.

"Fucking door," I say, then readjust my course and enter, rubbing the sore spot on my head. Trott is already sleep, face down on the bed. I laugh a bit and shake my head, then pick him up and put him back on the bed in a slightly more comfortable position. He mumbles in his sleep and rolls over. I climb in the other side of the bed, and as soon as my head hits the pillow, I'm out like a light.

-Reese's POV-

_It's so nice to see people actually living here,_ I reflect silently. Even though the Spire can hold at least a hundred more people, and none of the surrounding outbuildings are inhabited, the castle still feels more alive this way, and I like it. I write the last few names and the room numbers down on my clipboard and set it in the chest area, then walk towards my room, taking off my tie and dress shirt as I do.

"I hate suits," I mutter angrily as I struggle with a rather difficult button. Finally I get it undone, and I shut the door and crawl into bed without bothering to change my pants. At this point, I'm so tired I could care less. My last thought before I fall asleep is of Ross kissing me, and I fall asleep smiling.

-Ross's POV-

Reese is checking the rooms upstairs, logging who's in where, and Smith and Trott are already out drunk, so I'm left to cleanup the worst of the mess downstairs and lock the hall's doors. Once that's done, I'm off to the comfort of my own bed to sleep off this drunkenness. _I'll deal with the rest of the mess tomorrow,_ I think to myself. As I'm walking through the chest area, I spy a stray clipboard. Picking it up, I see Reese's neat but messy handwriting cataloging the used rooms and the guests. I smile, shake my head, and think about kissing him the whole rest of the way down to my room, and as I take off the crown and get into bed, I think of him right before I fall asleep. _He's a good kisser._

**So, there you go! A sweet little Christmas fic! I'm sorry its going out a day after Christmas, but I finally got to my hotel close to midnight, and I was too tired after going through the other three chapters to finish this one. At the point when I stopped last night, I was only just at the mistletoe part. I'm visiting family the next few days, so uploads may be a bit slow.**

**Also, very sorry I haven't posted in a while, but finals are atrocious! From now on, I'm going to try to keep he uploads a bit more constant.**

**Until next time, rock on, my fellow Yognaughts and Hatters! Merry Christmas, and happy holidays!**

**Best wishes,**


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